There is a wide assortment of Croton Plant Varieties that you can grow outdoors in your garden, and you can even grow crotons indoors as a houseplant. Many of these types of crotons come in shades of green, red, pink, orange, bronze, yellow, and purple.
This diverse selection makes crotons one of the most popular tropical plant species, but there are so many varieties available that it can be hard to narrow down your options.
That’s why we put together this list of croton plant varieties to help you select the best croton plant for your garden, or for your houseplant collection. You can also buy most of these croton plants online if your local nursery doesn’t carry your favorite croton plant variety.
Croton Varieties
Croton Petra
Croton Petra (Buy Online) is one of the most common croton plant varieties. It has large broad leaves that are shaped like a shield that makes it unmistakable. Petra also has variegated red, orange, and yellow leaves that put on a vibrant display in any indoor or outdoor environment.
Mammy Croton
Mammy Croton (Buy Online) is one of our favorite classic croton varieties. The most unique thing about Mammy croton is its twisted leaves that really add a nice touch of dimensionality and texture. Mammy Croton also has more subdued colors which makes it an excellent houseplant for a room with an organic earth tone color palette.
Gold Dust Croton
Gold Dust Croton (Buy Online) is a popular croton in outdoor landscapes, but it does equally well indoors in high light areas. As its name suggests Gold Dust has bright yellow spots on its narrow green leaves that give it a striking appearance both indoors or outdoors in your garden.
Croton Magnificent
Croton Magnificent (Buy Online) is a compact plant that has large dark green variegated leaves speckled with pink, orange, red, purple, and bright yellow. It will reach a mature height of seven feet when grown outdoors, and three to four feet indoors. Croton Magnificent is also shade tolerant, so it won’t lose its color in low light conditions.
Banana Croton
Banana Croton (Buy Online) is a small dwarf croton that makes a perfect houseplant for a small apartment. It gets the name Banana Croton from its thin green and yellow leaves that have a shape and color reminiscent of an unripe banana.
Bush On Fire Croton
Bush On Fire Croton lives up to its name with long leaves that are dappled in shades of red, orange, pink, and yellow. It grows to reach a maximum height of 3 to 5 feet, and it can be grown both indoors and outdoors. Also, Bush On Fire Croton will display more vibrant coloration as it matures.
Zanzibar Croton
Zanzibar Croton is a narrow leaf croton variety that has a grass-like look and texture. It also puts on a beautiful display of red, green, gold, orange, and purple speckled across its delicate leaf structure. Zanzibar is a compact croton plant reaching a maximum height of 3 to 4 feet, and it works well as a foreground plant or as a decorative accent.
Sunny Star Croton
Sunny Star Croton (Buy Online) has long elliptical leaves dotted in gold accents. Its compact form makes it an excellent houseplant, but it does well outdoors where it can reach 3 to 5 feet tall in medium light.
Yellow Iceton Croton
Yellow Iceton Croton (Buy Online) puts on a wonderful display with its bright green and yellow foliage. It can grow to be 3 to 4 feet tall when grown outdoors, and it stays relatively compact when grown as a houseplant. Yellow Iceton Croton will also do well in partial shade or full sun, which makes it one of the easier to grow types of croton plants.
Oakleaf Croton
Oakleaf Croton (Buy Online) has unique lobed leaves similar to an oak tree that give this croton plant a little extra visual appeal and character. It also has deeply colored variegated leaves with red, yellow, and orange veins. Oakleaf Croton will do best in full sun if you want to bring out its vibrant colors.
Mrs. Iceton Croton
Mrs. Iceton Croton (Buy Online) is one of the most beautiful croton varieties on the market. It has smooth light green leaves that turn a hue of yellow, orange, red, and pink. The leaves on the Mrs. Iceton Croton almost lose all their green coloration, which makes it a great plant to add to a landscape for a touch of “fall colored” leaves in a tropical climate.
Gold Star Croton
Gold Star Croton (Buy Online) is a small easy to grow croton plant that makes a great houseplant. It has narrow leaves with large bright yellow spots splashed all over most of the foliage. It also grows slowly indoors, so it won’t have to be transferred into a new pot that often.
Eleanor Roosevelt Croton
Eleanor Roosevelt Croton (Buy Online) is another classic croton variety that has narrow leaves with a rich dark green color mixed with red, yellow, and purple. This variety was first bred in the 1920s by Henry Coppinger and it was named in honor of the first lady of the United States of America.
Chocolate Caricature Jamaican Croton
Chocolate Caricature Jamaican Croton (Buy Online) has a color that sets it apart from most of the other croton plant varieties. Its leaves have a dark green chocolate color with hints of pastel pink and bronze. The stems also take on a pinkish purple color that really contrasts well with the leaves darker color.
Croton ‘Picasso’s Paintbrush’
Croton ‘Picasso’s Paintbrush’ (Buy Online) is a thin leaf croton variety that really lives up to its artistic moniker. The leaves of ‘Picasso’s Paintbrush’ really pop with a vibrant pastel color pallet. The narrow leaves also allow it to play the role as a ornamental grass, and you can plant it as an accent plant or in front of larger plants for a touch of texture and color.
Dreadlocks Croton
Dreadlocks Croton (Buy Online) has deep dark green leaves that are twisted and curled like braided dreadlocks. Over time the leaves slowly transform and turn bright red, yellow, and orange. It has a lot of similarities to Mammy Croton since it’s descended from Mammy, but dreadlocks leaves tend to develop deeper darker colors.
READ MORE: Best Fertilizer for Crotons
Superstar Croton
Superstar Croton is a bright upright thin leaf croton variety that has a vibrant color palette. Each one of the dark green leaves is lightly speckled with yellow spots that make it look like a Jackson Pollock painting. It also does well in both full sun and low light so it works well in shaded areas or when kept as a houseplant.
Mother and Daughter Croton
Mother and Daughter Croton is one of the most unique croton plant varieties. The narrow leaves of the Mother and Daughter Croton tapper off into a point that looks like a small leaflet. That along with its deep red and purple leaves makes Mother and Daughter Croton one of the best showpiece croton plants that you can add to your croton plant collection.
Lauren’s Rainbow Croton
Lauren’s Rainbow Croton is a narrow-leafed croton plant variety that displays a lovely blend of gold, burgundy, and dark green colors. It’s also highly drought tolerant and it doesn’t need high humidity to grow, which makes it an excellent houseplant for northern climates.
Florida Select Croton
Florida Select Croton has been specially bred to display a wide range of contrasting colors. The leaves are medium-sized with large yellow, red, orange, and purple veins. The leaves will also turn from a light green to deep dark green almost black color as they age.
Andrew Croton
Andrew Croton is a very popular houseplant that has narrow green leaves with creamy white frosted margins. This plant also stays relatively compact, and it does well when grown in a pot. Andrew Croton will also grow in light shade or indoors in areas with indirect sunlight.
Red Iceton Croton
Red Iceton Croton is one of the most striking croton plant varieties that will put on a show of gradually changing colors. Each leaf starts out a dark yellow color and then they slowly change from light pink to a deep red. Red Iceton Croton can also grow to a height of 7 to 8 feet, so it can be used as a privacy hedge in warm tropical climates.
Victoria Gold Bell Croton
Victoria Gold Bell Croton has medium-sized leaves that have a smooth glossy texture. The new leaves on Victoria Gold Bell Croton tend to be lightly variegated with a mix of yellow, orange, and purple. Also, when Victoria Gold Bell Croton is exposed to high light levels the older leaves will take on a vibrant red color.
